Mad In Love
by PotterInWonderland
Summary: Hatter realizes he loves Alice, and is devestated when she leaves. He copes with the help of Cheshire, Marchy, and Doormouse. Things go topsy-turvy when Hatter is sent on a mission by the White Queen.  Sorry, this is my first summary. I know it's bad.
1. Chapter 1: The Proposal

Alice was walking around the Hatter's kitchen, which seemed to be the only clean part of his house. She was watching him fumble around in his pockets. He was looking for something, she could tell. "Alice?" he said.  
"Yes, my Hatter?" She looked over at him, he was still frantically searching for whatever was in his pocket. Finally, he took her hands and got down on one knee.  
"Alice, w-will you..." he started, when the March Hare came skipping in. He gasped, "Hatty!" "Marchy!"  
"Alice!"  
"Hatter?"  
"MARCHY!" Hatter said, as if it were a warning. March Hare stumbled out, and ran into the doorway. Hatter shook his head, and stared back at Alice. He took a deep breath, and said. "Er, Alice? Will you...will you join me for tea?" She looked shocked and releived at the same time. She helped him up, "Sure," she said. "I'll make another pot of tea for you," and Hatter bolted out of the room.

Hatter was sitting at the table with the Cheshire Cat, his head in his hands. "I'm a failure, Chess. I'll never be able to ask her to marry me!" Cheshire patted his back, "There, there Hatter. You're not a failure," he said soothingly. "Thank you, Chess, you're a true friend," Hatter sighed. "If you were a true friend, you would give me that hat," said Cheshire. Hatter held the hat to his side, keeping it out of Chess' reach. "Now's no time to joke, Cheshire," Hatter said. Chess sighed, "I know," he said, "I know." Hatter looked up, "Alice is taking a long time, shall I check on her?" Cheshire Cat laughed, "You're too...protective, Hatter. You know that saying..."  
"What is it?"  
"Well, I thought you would know."  
Hatter boldly stood up, "I'm going to ask her, no games this time," Hatter said proudly. "Atta boy, Hatter!" said Chess, encouraging him to go on. He started towards the house, finally finding the little gold ring in his pocket.

He moseyed into the kitchen, where he found Alice. He cleared his throat, and she turned around. "Hatter!" she said, "You startled me!" He blushed, "Sorry, " he said. "Oh, it's alright," she said, smiling slightly. "I wanted to ask you something, Alice," Hatter said, squeezing the ring in his pocket. "Yes?" she said. Hatter took a deep breath, and got down on his knee for the second time. He swore he would ask her this time. He pulled out the little gold ring, much to Alice's surprise. "Will you marry me, Alice?" She gasped, "Hatter! This is...I don't know what to say!" He looked up at her, "Then say yes," She had tears streaming down her cheeks, "I can't, Hatter. I just..I have things to see, questions to be answered. I'm...sorry." Hatter was shocked, he hadn't expected that. He could feel tears burning behind his eyes, and swore he wouldn't cry in front of her. She kissed his forehead, and walked out of the room.

Hatter was in his room, in hysterics. He could see a puff of smoke form into the Cheshire Cat through his blurry vision. Chess floated over, and held the Hatter tenderly. They stayed like that for a few moments, when Hatter said "Ch-Chess? W-Where's Alice?" Chess rested his paw on Hatter's shoulder, "She's gone"  
"W-What do you mean?"  
"Hatter, she's in Overland. I'm so sorry."  
Hatter was furious at himself, his eyes glowing red, and out of his anger he picked up a lamp and threw it. He watched it shatter into a million pieces, just like his heart. He went to pick up a vase, when Chess whirled him around. "Hatter!" Hatter turned around, his eyes turning their normal shade of green. He stared into Chess' eyes, and whispered "I'm sorry." Chess patted his back. "I remembered that saying," said Cheshire, "If you love something, let it go."

Hatter went back into the kitchen to make a pot of tea, when he saw a peice of paper laying on a teapot. It was a note, and Hatter secretly hoped it was from Alice explaining why she had to leave. The note read:  
"Dearest Hatter,  
I have gone to 'Overland' for a while, but I promise you I'll be back soon. As I said, I have questions that need to be answered, and things I need to do. I promise I will be back before you know it. I'm really sorry about leaving so suddenly, but there's no need to worry for me, I'll be fine.  
Love, Alice."  
Hatter read the letter over and over again. He carefully tore off "Love, Alice" and put it in his pocket, next to that little gold ring.

It had been a week since Alice left, and Hatter was officially depressed. He was at the large tea table along with the Doormouse and the March Hare. The Doormouse put her little paw on his finger. "I know what will make you feel better. How about some tea?" Hatter sighed, "Not even tea can cheer me up this time." They gasped, "Don't be unreasonable, Hatter!" Doormouse squeaked. "You're right, Doormouse," he said, and poured himself a cup. He stirred it, even though it wasn't hot at all. "Why are you sad, Hatty?" said March Hare, picking up a piece of cake. "It's just that...I've waited so long for Alice to come, and the moment she comes, I scare her away." March Hare paused, as if in deep thought and said "You were happy waiting for her the first time, you can be happy waiting for her the second time, too!" Hatter stared in disbelief, "You said something that makes sense for once!" Marchy looked pleased, "I'm not as mad as you think I...cake..." Hatter laughed for the first time that week. "Hurray! You're cheering up already," Doormouse cheered. March Hare looked at the Hatter,"Hatty?" he said, "Are you all the way happy?"  
"I suppose so."  
"Good, because the White Queen is here."


	2. Chapter 2: The White Queen's Visit

Hatter stood up and forced a smile. "Your Majesty," he said. "Hello Hatter, Doormouse, March Hare," she said. Marchy was in a bow so low, his nose was touching the ground. The White Queen giggled a bit, but then looked very serious. "Hatter, I heard you proposed to Alice." Hatter's heart felt as it had dropped into his stomach. "Yes, but how did you know?" She paused for a moment, not knowing how Hatter would react to this, but finally said, "Alice came to me before she left to Overland." Hatter was shocked, "What did she say? Why is she gone? She never said..." The Queen held her hand out to stop him. "She said it is confidential buisness. I'm sorry I can't tell you, Hatter." He realized that he had been hectic, and had acted disrespectful towards the Queen. He didn't say anything. Marchy was still in his bow, when Doormouse whispered to him, and he sat up immediantly. They sat in an awkward silence, until Marchy pointed into the distance. "What are you looking at, Marchy?" the Hatter said. Marchy didn't speak, but kept pointing. They looked where he was pointing, and saw Cheshire Cat. "Chess," said Hatter, "What are you doing here?" Chess slumped down in a chair, and they saw his arm was bleeding horribly. "Chess! Are you alright?" Cheshire looked at the White Queen. He tried to bow, but his arm prevented him from doing so. "I-I'm alright. It'll vanish in a minute, I don't have the energy to vanish it yet." Hatter went over to him, and wrapped a ribbon around the wound. Chess patted his arm as a sign of gratitude, and Hatter didn't have to fake a smile that time.

After their tea, the White Queen stood up and bade them farewell. "I promise I'll keep you updated on Alice as much as I can." Hatter was happy at this, and hoped she would update soon. Marchy helped her onto her white horse, and she rode off. "So Chess, how did you hurt yourself anyways?" Chess looked down, embarresed. "I was...I was trying to get to Overland, to get Alice back for you. But when I tried to get out, I was attacked by a dog. I was frightened, Hatter. I'm sorry," Hatter was dumbfounded that anyone would do such a thing for him. He felt a surge of gratitude and friendship towards Cheshire, but also felt bad that he had gotten Chess hurt just for him. As if Cheshire had read his mind he rested his head on Hatter's shoulder. "I miss her, too."  
"Me too," March Hare piped in.  
"Same here," said Doormouse.  
Not as much as I do, Hatter thought.

Hatter felt as if he couldn't sleep that night. He had too much going through his head, Alice, the White Queen's visit, Chess' courageous act, Alice...He finally fell asleep after what seemed like hours, and had a terrible nightmare. He had been drinking tea, when he saw Alice standing there, a blank expression on her face. He ran to her, told her how happy he was now that she was back, but she acted as if she didn't hear him. He tried to get her attention, but she kept that blank expression. "Alice! Please answer me! I'm begging you! Alice, love, I..." Hatter sunk to his knees in exasperation, when he woke up. How very cliche, he thought. He got up, and went to make a pot of tea, when Marchy came in. "You miss her, don't you, Hatty? Very very much? But I'll tell you a secret...me too," he said, very sincerely. He put his finger to his lips as if to silence him. Hatter looked at Marchy. not saying anything. Marchy continued "I heard you talking while you were asleep. You said 'Alice, don't go. Alice, don't go' over and over...Is that a secret, Hatty? Shall I tell nobody?" Hatter nodded, he was embarresed that he had spoken in his sleep and even more that he was overheard. "Not even Chess?" said March Hare. "Not even Chess," replied Hatter. "Especially not Chess," Hatter said under his breath.


	3. Chapter 3: Chess

Chess had been wondering around the tree where he lived. He liked the peace and quiet, but needed some action every now and then. He would occasionly visit McTwisp who now was working for the White Queen. He would prefer the Palace life, and was honored when the Queen invited him over. He remembered pretending to be a King when he was but a kitten, and thought it would be grand. "But," he thought out loud (since he was alone, he talked to himself freely without ridicule) "you can't have everything, now can you?" He had vanished his cut, but had kept the ribbon as a sort of reminder of what he did, and of his lifelong friendship with the Hatter. He knew how much Hatter had adored Alice, and felt a great amount of sympathy for him. Chess wished he had someone to swoon over, but quickly disregarded this, seeing how much pain Hatter was in. Chess looked around, and took in his surroundings. He loved his tree, his view, and especially his friends. He decided to pay Hatter a visit, like he decides every day. But today was different, today he had a whole new attitude, and was ready to show it to the world.

Chess arrived at the tea party to laughter; Marchy was dancing on the table. Hatter looked a lot happier than he had earlier that week. Chess pulled up a chair, and watched as Marchy stepped in a piece of cake. Doormouse and Hatter burst out laughing as the cake flew all over Chess. Chess looked shocked, "Hatter! You're laughing again!" Hatter looked shocked at himself, then started laughing. Marchy was extremely happy, he was dancing with Doormouse. Hatter felt like a huge wieght had been lifted. Chess smiled his signature grin, he was glad that things were like they used to.

Hatter had invited Chess to stay over. Chess was very lazy and didn't want to go home. Besides, he was there for moral support even though he didn't seem to need it. Chess was sleeping in the Hatter's guest room, which seemed to be the messiest part of the house. Chess couldn't even find the bed, or anything else for that matter. He was a good sport though, and cleaned up the room much to Hatter's pleasure ("Can you do that to the rest of the house?"). Chess lied down in his bed. "I could get used to this," he purred to himself. He fell asleep easily, and woke up just the same when he heard a loud crash. He crept into the kitchen, where he saw a siloutte. "W-Who's there?" he said. He reached for the light switch, but he couldn't find it. He gathered up some courage, and said "Who are you?" He felt very stupid after saying that, and wished he hadn't. He saw a shadow move over to his left, and whirled around. "I-I'm warning you.I've got a...er...teacup! Yeah, a teacup, and I'm not afraid to use it!"  
"Did somebody say tea?"  
Chess found the light and turned it on, only to find Marchy walking around. Chess was so releived, and surprisingly, so was Marchy. Marchy looked at Chess, and said "Thank goodness it's you! I heard a noise and came into the kitchen. What are you doing up so late, Chessey?" "What are you talking about, Marchy? I came in here because I heard you."  
Marchy looked puzzed, "You must be confused, Chessey. Or I am dreaming a strange dream again. Whatever the case, I will say goodnight to you. Goodnight Chessey. Have sweet dreams...if this isn't another strange dream of mine." Marchy hopped off, and Chess was very confused. What had he heard if it wasn't Marchy? What if it was an intruder? Chess shook that thought away, "Don't be silly, Chess," he said to himeslf, "You're just worried about Alice and Hatter...and that strange noise."

Chess woke up that morning, feeling very confused. The first thought that occured to him is to tell Hatter about the noise he heard last night, but decided not to. "He's got too much on his mind already," Chess said. He decided that the sound was just Marchy walking in his sleep, but still wasn't sure. Chess walked outside into the crisp autumn air. "My! Seasons come and go so quickly!" he said. "Oh, it's been quite slow to me," said Hatter. Chess turned around, "Hatter! You startled me!" Hatter froze, "Sorry," he said. Chess noticed that Hatter was carrying a suitcase. "Where are you going?" Chess inquired. "Nowhere. Why would you think I'm going anywhere?" He chuckled awkwardly. Chess looked at him, strangly, "Well, you have a suitcase for one thing." Hatter looked down in surprise, "Oh! So I do!" Chess looked quizzically at Hatter, "Hatter, I'm not stupid. What's the matter?" Hatter sighed, "I'm not going anywhere, and you know very well what's the matter." Chess offered to take his trunk inside, seeing as he "wasn't going anywhere." Chess was confused about a lot of things now, and he surely didn't like it.


	4. Chapter 4: A Teapot for Hatter

When Chess got to the tea table, he was surprised to find that Hatter wasn't there. He's always the first one here, Chess thought. He saw Marchy come out of the doorway, looking very sleepy. "Things are very curious," said Chess. He went to pour himself some tea, when Doormouse jumped out of the teapot. "Are you mad? I was sleeping there," she squeaked. Marchy was laughing madly. Chess dropped the teapot in surprise, "Sorry! I didn't realize..." "It's okay," Doormouse inturrepted. "Speaking of which, where is Hatter?" Chess said, "I was going to ask you the same thing." Doormouse looked surprised and confused. She wasn't used to Hatter not being there, he was the one who found her as a mousling. She had been in a ship with her family; her parents and her 10 brothers and sisters. They were having a wonderful time, when a huge wave hit the boat. It flipped over, causing the mouse family to fall out. Everyone had made it back into the boat, everyone except for little Doormouse. She had been the youngest, too young to swim. She sqeaked for help, but no one heard her. The waves carried her to shore, where Hatter found her. "Don't worry," he had said, "Here, climb onto my hat, I'll take you home for some tea." And she had been with him ever sence. Chess jumped up, interrupting her train of thought. "I'll check in his room, he's probably still sleeping. He can be very lazy sometimes." Chess said as he wandered into Hatter's room.  
"Wake up, sleepyhead!" he shouted, but there was no reply. He moved closer to his bed, and tapped it. "Hatter?" said Chess. He yanked down the covers, and much to his surprise, Hatter wasn't there. He saw a sheet a paper float down, and grabbed it just before it hit the ground. The note said "To whom it may concern, (Chess, Marchy, Doormouse) I got a letter saying that I have a task that needs to be accomplished. I'll be gone for a few days, or weeks, or months. Whatever the case, I'll be back soon. It's not an extremely dangerous task. In fact, the only danger is getting there! I'm going to miss you all very much, especially tea time! I do hope they have tea where I'm going, the pot I have is getting quite cold. Chess, you hid my suitcase very well. I'm sorry I lied to you about not going anywhere. You see, I got a letter from McTwisp about my task. I do adore that little white Rabbit. Oh dear, I'm off subject, aren't I? That's a shame, seeing as I am writing in ink. Anywho, I have a task that needs to be accomplished, Chess is in charge while I'm gone, ect., ect. Best regards, Hatter."  
Chess slumped down, "I should've stopped him," he said miserably. "He lied about not going anywhere, and I believed him. How could I be so dumb?" Doormouse put her paw on his, "You did your best, I would've believed him too." Marchy was grumbling to himself, "Why couldn't he make ME in charge?" Poor Chess didn't know what to do at all.

Chess finally figured out how people could become mad so quickly. Waiting for Alice and now the Hatter was nerve-wracking. He politely sipped his tea, while Marchy slow-danced with Doormouse to the scraching of a broken record. Chess wanted desperatly to search for Hatter, but thought that Marchy would burn the house down if he was left alone."Besides," he said to himself "he'll be back soon. He said so himself." Chess daydreamed about being with Alice and the Hatter again, in the White Queen's palace. He though about how happy Hatter would be, and how things would be back to normal. But then he came back to the present, without a Hatter or an Alice. He watched Marchy and Doormouse with the same expression as watching a mildly amusing television show. The record player made an awful screeching noise, then stopped working altoghether. Marchy looked very dissapointed, "What a shame, that was an unbirthday present," he said glumly. "Then maybe you shouldn't have poured tea all over it," remarked Chess. Marchy just shrugged, and jumped into a chair. Doormouse scampered off into her teapot, and fell asleep. Chess watched as Marchy attemped to fit a large cookie into a doll-sized teacup. He decided to get up, and go inside. It was getting colder. "That means that it's closer to Winter, " he reasoned. He made his way into Hatter's room, messier than ever. He had to avoid the broken glass from the lamp he shattered. He tripped on a box laying in the middle of the room. He looked curiously at the box, for it had his name on it. In big red letters it said "Not to be opened until Cheshire Cat's Un-Birthday!" He opened it, and found a replica of Hatter's hat, fitted to his head with holes for his ears. Chess laughed, it was just like Hatter to make him a hat. "What a good friend he is! I should make him something for when he gets back. I wish he was here, so I can thank him properly. But, he's not."

Chess was trying to think of what to make for Hatter. He thought it would be best if Marchy and Doormouse helped him with it. They were trying to decide what to make him together, seeing as this was now a team project. "Okay," Chess said, "We need to make something he would like." Marchy raised his hand. "Anything besides tea, Marchy." He put his hand down, then put it back up. "Yes?" Chess said. "I have an excelllent idea! Hatty likes hats!" he said. Chess looked at him, "Do I look like I have any idea how to make a hat? Besides, he has hundreds already." Marchy's ears flopped over. Chess looked over at Doormouse, "Any ideas?" She shook her head. Marchy raised his hand slowly. "Yes, Marchy?" Chess deadpanned. "He likes Alice," Marchy said quietly. Chess sighed, "I know that, but we can't make him an Alice!" Chess was hopeless, and after a while he wanted to discard the idea. Doormouse had scurried off somewhere, and told them to stay there. Suddenly, they heard a loud screeching noise, and Doormouse struggling with something. "Should I..." Chess started, when a teapot started moving towards them. Marchy screamed like a maniac, and Chess shushed him. The teapot hopped onto the chair, and they heard it pant. Chess snuck over to it,and hit it with the box.  
"OUCH! What was that for?" Doormouse stuck her head out from behind the teapot, rubbing her ears. Chess laughed, and apologized. Doormouse pointed to the plain white teapot, "We could decorate this for him!" Chess smiled, "That's perfect! What do you think, Marchy?" Marchy looked suprised that anyone was asking his opinion, "I think it's spetacular, amazing, wonderful, fanta-" "We get your point Marchy," Chess interrupted. "Sorry," said Marchy, " I like synana...synomom...sinaninims..cinnamons? Yes, I like cinnamons, words that mean the same thing." He smiled proudly. Chess shook his head with a smirk on his face. He really didn't want to be rude, but he felt smart when he was around Marchy.

After they were done decorating the teapot, Marchy suggested they had a camp-out outside. "It will be a lot of fun! Hatty and I did it once." Chess and Doormouse were up to that idea, they needed something fun to take their minds off Alice and the Hatter. They found a tent under Hatter's bed (which wasn't surprising considering the rest of his room.) They set it up right outside the house, and then tried to scope out some sleeping bags. Once they found them, they packed into the tent. Doormouse fell asleep immediantly, while Chess and Marchy stayed up and told stories. Marchy told about his strange dreams, and Chess told about memories from his childhood. Marchy begged him to tell the story of how he met Hatter, even though he had told him many times before. The story always started the same way, with his mother saying, "Now Cheshire, don't go into the Mushroom Forest. You're still just a kit, and you will get lost."  
"Yes mother," he said. But curiosity got the best of him. He tramped away after a butterfly, constantly tripping on his oversized paws. He was practicing his vanishing, he was pretty good at it, when he realized how dark it had gotten. He wailed for his mother, and wished that he had listened to her, when suddenly he saw a huge figure standing there. He tried to hiss at it, but it came out as more of a "shhh" noise. The figure didn't move at all. Cheshire meowed quietly, he was so frightened. The figure took a step forward, Chess could make out that it was a person. "w-Who are you?" he finally said. There was no reply. He said a bit louder, "I said who are you? It's rude not to answer when you are spoken to, that's what my mother taught me." The person laughed, "Aw, it's mama's widdle boy!" Cheshire was angered at this, "I am not! And you never answered my question." "Why should I?" laughed the person. "You aren't the boss of me, nobody is." Cheshire was flabbergasted, "You are extremely rude. I just wanted to know your name."  
"I haven't got one," said the person. Cheshire was shocked. Never before had he encountered someone without a name, "That's a shame. My name is Cheshire Cat."  
"Pleasure to meet you. Can I call you Chess? Your name is a mouth-full." Cheshire whispered to himself, "Chess, Chess, I like it!" The person stepped forward into the light, and Cheshire saw that it was only a boy who was wearing a hat. "Why're you talking to yourself?"  
"I didn't realize that I was." The boy laughed, "You're funny, Chess." Chess smiled, "Thank you...If you don't have a name, then what am I to call you?"  
The boy looked up, "See this hat? I made it myself!" Chess was amazed, it was a very lovely hat, "Then you are a hatter," he remarked.  
"Yes, you can call me that." "Call you Hatter?"  
"Why not? It's not a bad name."  
"Hatter, I think we are going to be good friends." Hatter froze, "Can I tell you a secret? I've never had a friend before." Chess patted his arm, "You do now."

By the time Chess had finished his story, Marchy had fallen asleep. He snuck out of the tent, and into the grass. He gazed up at the stars, and wondered what Hatter was doing right now. What was Alice doing right now? He daydreamed again, until he fell asleep in the grass. He had a dream, the same one he always had, of him parading around the castle. He had a large crown atop his head, and a huge grin on his face. He sat on his throne, and servants appeared out of nowhere. "Servants, go scope out Alice and the Hatter...Well, go on! You're not here to stand around and look pretty!" One servant looked at him, "That is impossible, Your Majesty."  
"What do you mean by impossible? Nothing is impossible!" "Your Majesty, were you not informed on what has happened?" the servant replied. Chess looked confused, "No, what happened?" The servant hung his head, "They died, Your Majesty." "What? No! That's impossible..."  
Chess woke up, sweating. "It's only a dream, it's only a dream," he repeated to himself. "They can't possibly be dead, Alice is in Overland, and Hatter said there was no danger involved in whatever his task was." He poked his head into the tent, Marchy and Doormouse were still sleeping. He decided to go inside the house. Chess thought about cleaning up the house, but he felt very lazy that morning. He made a promise to do it sooner or later. He sat in the kitchen, and lookd out the window, where he saw a white horse coming towards them. "The Queen!" he gasped. He quickly woke up Marchy and Doormouse, and waited in the yard for her to arrive. As the horse arrived, they saw that the Quenn looked very tired, and a lot less put together as she usually did. Chess bowed, "Your Majesty." She smiled at him, "I'm glad to see your arm is better, Cheshire," she said. He nodded in responce. "Now, I have some important news for you all." They gathered around her, as Chess helped her off of her horse. "I wanted you to know that the Hatter is doing just fine. He is at the Palace with me." Chess let out a sigh of relief, he had been so worried anout him. Marchy raised his hand. "Yes, March Hare?" the Queen said.  
"Can we go to see him? Tea-Time really isn't the same without him, and I miss him very much," he said bashfully. The Queen put her hand on his ear, "I'm afraid he still has some duties to fufill, but he will be back soon, I promise." Chess raised his hand briefly, "If you please, Your Majesty, what are these tasks?" "I'm afraid I can't tell you, Cheshire. It's royal buisness that is strictly confidential." Chess looked disheartened. The Queen checked her pocketwatch, "Oh dear, look at the time, I really must be off," She bade them farewell and rode off.


	5. Chapter 5: Hatter's Quest

Hatter had been enjoying his time in the Palace, but desperatly wanted to go home. He missed Chess, Marchy, and Doormouse very much. It was hard to cope without his twice-daily tea session, and with the Queen bringing up Alice so very often. He felt like these jobs the Queen was giving him were basically what was on her To-do list. Fetch her this ingridient, find the missing necklace, send this letter to the Duchess, odd jobs like that. He was sitting on his bed, when he was summoned by the Queen. He poked his head into the Throne Room.  
"Ah, Hatter! There you are, I have a task for you," she said.  
"Oh, great," he said with false joy. She stood up and seemed to glide over to him, "You remember my sister," Hatter was surprised that she was bringing up the Red Queen , "How could I forget?" he joked. She didn't seem to be in the mood for jokes now, "I believe she stole something from me, something very important. A key," she said. Hatter was excited, he thought he would finally get to do something interesting.  
"Okay, what shall I do?" he asked.  
"You need to find her, and convince her to give it back to me," she replied as if this was a very simple task. Hatter's smile faded, "How am I supposed to find her? More or less, convince her to give me the key?" The Queen glided back to the Throne.  
"Little does she know, I've had guards tracking her down, just in case she decided to, oh, pay us a visit," she replied with a sly grin on her face. The Queen pulled out a small, folded up sheet of paper. She unfolded it until it could possibly cover an entire dinner table. "This," she said, " is a map of Underland. Now we are here, and from what I've heard,my dear old sister is right about...here."  
"B-B-but that's all the way across the map! We're in the North Branch of Underland, and she's in the South Branch! That's an awfully long journey," Hatter complained.  
"Now Hatter, I know you can do it. You'll have guards accompany you there if you'd like," she suggested. Hatter stood up straighter, "I'm fine, I don't need any guards. I can handle whatever Underland throws at me!" The White Queen just smiled and shook her head, "I knew you'd say that, Hatter. You're very brave."  
"Thank you, Your Majesty," he replied.  
"Now go get some rest, you have a big task ahead of you!"

When Hatter woke up the next day, he felt sick. He could never convince the Red Queen to give him the key to whatver the White Queen had. "Come to think of it, what does she need the key to?" He decided to go and ask her. He walked down the long hallway, marveling at how clean and proper everything was. He stopped to look at pictures of very serious looking people, and considered having pictures in his house.  
"But they will be of something interesting, not like those boring pictures that are in the hallway." He poked his head into the Throne Room to see if the Queen was there. "Your Majesty?" He called. There was no reply. He turned around and started back down the hallway, it wasn't an extremely important question, and he would probably find out sooner or later. He made his way to the Hatter's Quarters so he could make a hat. He didn't have any particular reason for it, he had found some new fabric that he wanted to make something out of. He got to the door, only to find it locked. He reached up to his hat and pulled out a saftey pin. He picked the lock, and made his way in, where he found the White Queen.  
"Your Majesty!" he gasped, "What are you doing here?" She looked up at Hatter, "Why Hatter, you startled me," she replied. Hatter froze, "Sorry," he muttered. She glanced at the saftey pin in his hands, "I see how you got in," she remarked. Hatter blushed, and stuck the pin back into his hat. She got up, and walked over to Hatter, "If you want to work, then I'll leave you be," she said.  
"Oh, If you were busy in here, then I'll go back to my room, it's no trouble at all," he replied. She smiled at him, "You are very kind, but I have a study that I will move to. It's no problem for me, I only have a few papers." Hatter bowed slightly, and held the door for her. He watched as she drifted down the long hallway and eventually turned towards her room. Hatter went over to the sewing machine, and sat down in the wooden chair. This felt so right to him, being here making hats.  
"If only Alice were here," he sighed.

He had made several hats by the time the White Queen called him into the Throne Room. She walked over to him, and placed her hands on his shoulders.  
"You have a big day ahead of you, Hatter. But I know you can do it." He laughed nervously, and shifted his weight from one foot to another. The Queen giggled, "Hatter, your going to be fine. The Red Queen has no power now, and she's probably very insecure without her whole kingdom." This reassured Hatter, but only slightly. He tried to convince himself that he was going to be fine while on the journey, but he could never lie to himself. He thought of his Alice, and his freinds at home; how proud they would be of him. This seemed to relax him a bit. He kept thinking of Alice until it was time to leave.  
"Well," he gulped, "this is it. Goodbye, your Majesty." She waved to him as he stepped out into the sunlight.


	6. Chapter 6: A Visit Home

"What does she expect me to do, sleep on the ground?" Hatter whined. He had been walking for a few hours, and was tired already. He had gotten used to the Palace life, and wasn't thrilled at the idea of leaving. He had started a conversation with himself, mainly about Alice. He wondered if she talked to herself as well. "It's possible, Chess talks to himself, and he's not mad. Well, he admitted to being a bit mad, but he's sane for the most part. And Alice isn't mad at all. Well, is she? I wonder if..." He had a long chat, with himself and suddenly realized that he was in the middle of the Mushroom Forest. He thought to ask someone for directions, but who would be here? As if his mind was read, the Tweedle Twins came stumbling into the clearing.

"Could it be?" Dee asked Dum.  
"No, of course not..." Dum replied.  
"Yes, I think..."  
"Well, you're wrong, I think I'd reconize..."  
"Yes it is!" Dee exclaimed, "See the hat?" Dum looked up, "Oh, it IS you Hatter!" Hatter laughed, they had spoken like that since before they could speak. Dee started, "How can we..."  
"...help you?" Dum finished. Hatter explained his mission to the Tweedles, and they gasped. "We don't associate with the Red Queen anymore." Dee said. "But we can accompany you to the South Branch," Dum suggested. Dee's eyes widened, "Like an adventure?" They joined hands and skipped in a circle, chanting "We're going on an adventure! We're going on an adventure!" Hatter had to stop them, "This is extremely tricky, and I don't want you to..." he stopped himself, he was going to say 'I don't want you to mess things up,' "...I don't want you getting hurt." The Tweedles looked dissapointed, and Hatter felt bad for leaving them behind. Suddenly he had an idea, "Marchy's been dying to see you two, why don't you visit him at my house? In fact, I don't think the Queen will mind if I stopped by as well, let's go!"

Hatter walked through the forest, tuning out Tweedle-Dee and Dum's conversations. He was thinking about his mission. He considered abandoning the mission. Besides, he thought, why can't the Queen go ask for it herself? He also realized how hard it would be for him to explain to Chess that he had to leave again. He didn't want them to come with him, in fear of them getting hurt. He looked at the piece of sky he could see through the mushrooms, and realized how dark it had gotten. The Tweedles realized this too, and quickly huddled together.  
"Hatter?" Dum said nervously. "When are we going to..."  
"Are we there yet?" Dee interrupted. Hatter strained to see in the dark, "No, but I reconize the path, we're close," he said. The Tweedles relaxed, and whispered to each other, as if they were afraid that someone could hear them. They walked for a bit more, when suddenly, they saw a light coming from a clearing. "Is that..."  
"We're here!" Hatter exclaimed, as he ran to the front door. He fumbled around for the key, when he heard a cry. "Who's there?" the voice called. Hatter reconized Marchy at once, "Marchy! It's me, Hatter! You don't know how glad I am to hear your voice." Marchy squealed, and unlocked the door, "Hatty! You're home, I missed you so very much!"  
"Did someone say Hatty? Is he here?" Chess called from his bedroom. Hatter rushed over to the guest room, and threw open the door. CHess dropped his teacup, and ran to Hatter, "Hatter! I'm so glad you're home...I missed you," Chess purred. Hatter looked at him, "I missed you too," he said. Chess grinned at him, "Well, now that you're home, we have a present for you!"  
"You do? Can I have it now?" Hatter said eagerly. Chess laughed, "Of course you can! Marchy, go get Hatter's present." Marchy saluted Chess, then hopped off into the kitchen. He came back in with his hands behind his back, the Tweedles following close behind him. Chess pulled his hat over his eyes, and handed him the teapot. Hatter took his hat off, and gasped. "We made it, all of us," Marchy said. Hatter hugged Chess and Marchy, "It's wonderful," he said. He examined it, and saw the lid start to shake. He took it off, only to find Doormouse inside. He laughed, it was so good to be home. Too bad it wasn't for good.


	7. Chapter 7: Marchy's Tale

Hatter woke up bright and early that morning. He made a pot of tea, and went outside. It was a sunny, April day, and he was ready to be with his friends. He sat down at the head of the table, and looked at the sky, when he remembered that he had to tell Chess about his unfinished mission. He slumped down, and poured himself some tea. "How am I possibly going to tell them? I've been gone for months, and suddenly I have to leave again. Or do I? Yes, I have to go," he said bravely. Chess appeared in the seat next to his, "Morning Hatter!" he said joyfully. "Good morning, Chess. There's been something I've been meaning to tell you," he started when Marchy came skipping along. "Hi Hatty! How was your sleep? Did you have any dreams?" he said curiously. Hatter was relieved to be off the topic of him leaving, "Yes, I had a very good dream." "What was it about?" Marchy asked. "Alice, of course. Oh, don't worry Marchy, you were there too." Marchy looked excited at this. "I had dreams too, and they were normal this time!" he said proudly. Hatter scratched him behind his ears, and poured him some tea. "What did you dream about, Marchy?" Hatter asked. Marchy sat up, a sign that this was going to be a long story. "Well, remember how we met, Hatty?"  
"Yes, of course I do," Hatter said.  
"I dreamed about that," Marchy said. "You want to hear it, Chess?" Chess' eyes gleamed, he never remembered hearing how Hatter met Marchy. "Of course I do, Marchy."  
"Well, it all started when I was just a kit. One kit of twelve; six brothers and five sisters not including myself. Their names are January, Febuary, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, and December Hare. I really don't know why Mummy chose such strange names for us, but I...oh, dear! I'm off subject, aren't I? So we were all in our liittle hutch, doing as all Hares do, when suddenly, we heard a noise. A big, scary noise! We all huddled together, and saw a patch of light coming from our roof! We only had one solution to what was going on; the farmer was trying to dig us out. You see, we made the unwise decision of setting our house in the middle of a garden, and the farmer dissaproved of Hares in fear that we might try to eat his veggietables. 'Go away, Hares! You're not welcome in my garden!" he had called. I was so frightened, that I stayed frozen while my family hopped away. He scooped me up, and dumped me into a big, wire Marchy-trap! I stayed there all night, cold, dark and alone. Until Hatty tripped on it, and he found me in there. He took me to his house, and I wasn't alone anymore."

"Wow, Marchy. That's a great story," Chess said. Hatter sighed, "I remember that so well, especially falling into the pile of dirt." Marchy laughed, and drank his tea in one swallow.  
"What did you want to tell me, Hatter?" Chess asked. Hatter choked on his tea, he had totally forgotten about telling him. He certainly didn't want Marchy to be there, he'd be devestated. "It's nothing really. I'll tell you later," he said signaling to Marchy. Chess nodded in responce, and stared at the faded lavender ribbion on his arm. It was falling apart, string by string, but Chess kept it anyways. He looked up at Hatter and smiled. Hatter grinned at him. He poured himself some more tea, as he looked up at the trees. So pretty, he thought. "Say, has anyone seen Doormouse?" Chess asked. As if on cue, Doormouse poked her head out of the top of the teapot she had beensleeping in.  
"You called?" she asked, and they all laughed. Hatter picked up her teapot and looked at her, then at Marchy and Chess. Marchy looked confused, "Hatty? Why are you staring at us like that?" he asked curiously. Hatter just smiled, and said that there was no reason. Marchy, still confused, just nodded and grabbed a biscuit.  
"I feel there is something missing here," said Hatter. Chess agreed, "Yes, but what?" Suddenly, they looked at each other in shock, "The Tweedles!"


	8. Chapter 8: Continuing The Journey

It had been three hours since they had started searching for the Tweedle Twins, but they were nowhere to be found. "Where could they possible have gotten to?" Hatter asked himself. He had looked around the Forest, but hadn't gone in very far. He had sent Chess looking around the back, Doormouse in the forest area, and Marchy inside the house in case they were hiding. Hatter scoped the perimeter of his property, (which wasn't very far to walk) as he continued looking. He eventually met up with Chess, who hadn't found them.  
"Shall we check on Marchy?" Hatter suggested. Chess shrugged, and they walked inside. "March?" Chess called. "Did you find them?" Marchy came into the kitchen, looking very sad, "No, they are missing!" Hatter groaned, and started pacing. "I don't have time to search for them," Hatter complained. Chess looked confused, "What do you mean? You have all the time in the world." Hatter took a deep breath and closed his eyes, "There's something I need to tell you, right now," he said. Chess' eyes widened, he hoped this wasn't bed news. "I have to leave, I'm not really supposed to be at home. The Queen sent me on a mission, and I made a detour back home. I didn't realize how stupid that was," he said. Chess gasped, "Oh, Hatter. Why didn't you just say that?" he asked. Hatter was confused, "Aren't you mad?" Chess laughed, "Of course not! This is exactly what I'd expect of the Queen." Hatter sniggered, he thought exactly the same thing. Chess suddenly looked serious, "Let me come with you," he said. Marchy jumped up and down, "Me too! Me too!"  
"Of course not! You could get hurt," Hatter exclaimed.  
"So could you. Besides, you could use my help," Chess said. Hatter looked at him, "You don't even know what the mission is. What if it was 'go jump off a cliff?'" Chess laughed, "Then why don't you tell me what it is?" Chess said matter-of-factly. Hatter stuck his tounge out at him, he hated it when Chess won an argument. "I have to find a key." "Oh, the danger!" Chess said sarcastically. "I have to find a key, in the South Branch of Underland. Actually, I have to persuade the Red Queen to give it to me," Hatter deadpanned. Chess' smile faded immediantly, and Marchy hid behind a chair at the thought of the Red Queen. He was shaking so violently, that the chair was wobbling. Chess gulped, "Oh," he said. "You still up for it?" Hatter asked. Chess gulped again, "Sure," he sqeaked. Marchy nodded from behind his shaking chair, as one of the legs broke off of it.

Hatter woke up early the next morning. He made his way into the kitchen to make a pot of tea, when he saw a shadow in the hallway. "Chess?" he called. He heard a laugh; it didn't sound very familiar. Hatter walked over to the hallway cautiously, and looked under the table. He gasped, "Tweedle-Dee! Tweedle-Dum!" The twins laughed, "We win! We win this round of Hide 'n Seek!" they shouted gleefully. Hatter groaned, and started laughing. They climbed out from under the table, and went into the kitchen for a snack. "Well, I think..." Dee started, grabbing a cookie.  
"We'll be heading home," Dum interrupted, snatching the cookie from him. Hatter looked dissapointed, but was secretly relieved. They were much more trouble than they were worth. "Goodbye, Hatter," they said together. Hatter waved, as they headed towards the Mushroom Forest. After they were out of sight, Hatter walked over to his tea-table. He sat down with his pot of tea and watched as the rest of the world woke up. He listened as the birds chirped and thought all about Alice. He leaned his chair back and sighed. "Morning!" a voice called, startling Hatter. His chair flipped over backwards, and he screamed. A puff of smoke turned into Chess, who was laughing hysterically. "Did I scare you?" he asked. Hatter got up off the ground, and set his chair back upright. He nudged him hardly in the arm, "What do you think?" he said sourly. Chess chuckled, and sat down. "You ready, Hatter?" he asked. Hatter snorted, "Of course I am. I was the first person who agreed to the mission in the first place." Chess poured himself some tea, and just as he was about to drink it, Hatter snatched it. Chess glared at him, "What was that for?" "For coming along with me on this mission. You could get hurt," Hatter said. Chess looked down, he really didn't want to upset Hatter; he was only worrying for Chess' well-being. Hatter also looked down, "I couldn't live with myself if you or Marchy got hurt," he said sympathetically. Chess patted him arm, and nothing more needed to be said.

"Marchy, of all the dumb ideas you've had, this, by far, has to be the dumbest," Hatter groaned. Marchy looked at the ceiling, "I just though Doormousie would like to come on our adverture, too. She'd be so very lonely all by herself," he explained. Doormouse nodded, "I can't stand being alone, you know that." Hatter groaned again, "I just don't want any of you getting hurt. The Red Queen is a dangerous, deranged, deleusional, despot tyrant!" Doormouse put her paw on his index finger, "We understand that, thanks for clearing that up," she joked. Marchy looked at him, "Too bad tyrant doesn't start with a 'd', otherwise you would have made a rhyme." Chess and Hatter smirked at each other, and agreed with Marchy in fear of him getting upset. Hatter paced around the room, "Don't get off subject," he said firmly. Chess rolled his eyes, "Hatter, you need to settle down," said Chess. "Settle down? How can I possibly settle down when I've gone from preforming a mission to becoming a babysitter?" he pratically shouted. Marchy gasped, "There are...babies coming?" he said, shocked. Hatter realized what he had said, and quickly reassured him that there were no babies involved. Chess tried to hold in laughter, and Hatter nudged him. Chess rubbed him arm, and scowled. Doormouse scurried over to the end of the table, "I'm still confused. Are there, or are there not any babies coming?" Hatter pressed his hand against his forehead, "No. There are no babies involved what-so-ever," he said. Chess howled with laughter.  
Hatter sighed, "Oh, dear. This is going to be a long trip."


End file.
